Plastic boning tips



y 1950 M. SCHWARTZ PLASTIC BONING TIPS Filed D60. 2, 1958 FIG. 6

FIG. 5

INVENTOR.

Marcus Schwartz BY i 7 ATTORNEY United States Patent PLASTIC BONING TIPS Marcus Schwartz, Kew Garden Hills, N.Y., assignor to S. & S. Industries, Inc., New York, N.Y., a corporation Filed Dec. 2, 1958, Ser. No. 777,663

1 Claim. (Cl. 2-257) This invention relates to boning, such as used in ladies garments for stiffening and/or shaping, and more particularly to novel flexible tips for such boning and which may be stitched by a sewing needle without breakage of the needle.

Present day boning used to stiffen and shape garments such as brassieres, girdles, corsets and the like, comprises relatively elongated flat metal elements formed of spiral 'or bent wire, or flat steel strip elements, each element having metal .caps or tips to avoid sharp ends on the boning.

The use of metal tips on the boning has the disadvantage that the boning must terminate short of the edge stitching of the garment as the tips cannot extend into the lines of stitching or else the sewing needles would be broken. Consequently, the boning is not stitched to the garment and at least the edge portions of the garment are not reinforced by the boning. The edge portions, being thus unsupported, tend to roll over or curl, causing discomfort. Additionally, the shifting of the boning in the pockets provided for insertion thereof causes discomfort, particularly due to the rigid ends or tips of the boning.

The foregoing disadvantages are obviated, to a substantial degree, by providing deformable plastic tips for the boning. These flexible plastic tips, when formed of a plastic having the requisite stiffness modulus, tensile strength, heat resistance, and elongation characteristics, can extend into the lines of stitching adjacent the margins of the garment. Thus these margins are supported and the boning is anchored in place by stitching through the plastic tips.

As presently used, such plastic tips are flat elongated elements tapering in thickness from the middle toward each end, and having a pocket at the inner end receiving the boning. The tips may be molded onto the boning or otherwise secured thereto. A suitable plastic having the requisite characteristics as mentioned above is a low density polyethylene synthetic resin.

While these tips perform satisfactorily in general, it has been found that they may be improved in certain respects. For example, while the tips have some flexibility, the combined structure of boning and plastic tends to resist deflection or bending of the inner halves of the tips, and the solid polyethylene of the outer ends of the tips is likewise not as flexible as could be desired. Consequently, bending stresses are shifted inwardly to the boning inward of the inner ends of the tips. While this condition could be ameliorated by use of a much softer plastic, such use would introduce certain undesirable characteristics to the tips.

In accordance with the present invention, improved flexibility of the outer halves of the tips beyond the boning is provided by reducing the thickness of the tips just beyond the inserted boning to provide a thinned section of the tips. This thinned section may be provided by molding recesses in one or both side faces of the tips. Additionally, easier insertion of the boning into its pocket 2,938,215 Patented May 31, 1960 ence is made to the following descriptions of typical embodiments thereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of one form of boning tip embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a similar view of a modified form;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of boning provided with the tip of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a side elevation view of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the lower half of a non-metallic spring loaded die for heat sealing the tips to the boning; and' Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the dies.

In each of the examples of tips described hereinafter, the tip material is a low density polyethylene resin having the following characteristics:

Density (8.6.) 0.91-0.93 Hardness, Shore 40-50 Stiffness modulus, p.s.i 10,00025,000 Tensile strength, p.s.i 1500-2000 Elongation, percent 212 Heat resistance, F 212 Referring to Fig. 1, a tip 10 embodying the invention is illustrated as having a pocket 11 extending partly therethrough from an inner end 12 of the tip. Pocket 11 is somewhat wider than boning 20 (Figs. 3 and 4) but its height is such as to have a tight fit on the boning.

Outwardly of pocket 11, the side faces 13, 14 of tip 10 converge to form a tapered inner end rounded as at 16. The side edges of the tip converge outwardly of pocket 11 as best seen in Fig. 3, the side edges merging into a rounded outer end of the tip.

In accordance with the invention, tip 10 is formed with a dimple or recess 15 outwardly of pocket 11, reducing the thickness of tip 10 at recess 15 to about onehalf the maximum thickness of the tip. The flexibility of tip 10 is thus substantially increased at recess 15, shifting bending stresses from boning 20 to the zone of recess 15.

In the preferred form of tip 10' shown in Figs. 24, recesses or dimples 15 are formed in each side face 13', 14 to thin the tip at the dimple zone to substantially one-thirdthe maximum thickness. Boning 20 is inserted into pocket 11' and may be heat sealed to tip 11.

Preferred apparatus for heat sealing the tips to boning 20 is shown in Figs. 5 and 6, which illustrate the upper and lower halves of a non-metallic spring loaded die 25.

Lower half 21 of die 25 has a recess 22 in its upper surfaces shaped in plan to conform to tip 10 or 10. Upper half 23 of die 25 has a mating'ridge 24 on its undersurface extending into recess 22. Normally the two die halves are slightly separated vertically to allow a tip 11 on boning 20 to be inserted into recess 22 beneath ridge or rib 24. The springs, which have been omitted for clarity force die halves 21, 23 toward each other, tending to compress the plastic tip against the inserted boning.

Die 25 is placed in an induction heating coil. The induced currents have no effect on the die or on the plastic tip, but do heat the boning 20 to from 300 F. to 350 F. The heated boning softens the tip material and, under the spring pressure on the die halves, the tip material is deformed into and heat sealed to the boning. Die pressure is maintained after the induction heating is discontinued until the boning and tip have cooled to near room temperature. As a result, the tip is integrally sesame 1;, honing to lock the tip thereto. r While specific embodiments of the invention have been shown and described in detail to illustrate the ap: plication of the invention principles, it will *be'pndei stood that the inventionni ay be en'ibodied otherwisejwithout departing fromsu'ch-principlesn I What is claimed is: i A garment boning-comprising'a-relatively elongated substantially wide and flat-flexible metallic inemben'and a terminal at one end thereof of re'silient'plastic composition material readily p'ierceableby a sewing machineneedle, said terminal being of'substahtial' width and length and having opposed side faces-and side edges; the inner-portion of s'aidterminal embracing said one end of said metallic member and the outer portion of said terminal extending-beyond saidone end of said metallic member and being free and flexible underbodypressure; the outer portion of said terminaihavinga thinned zone between said side edges providing in said outer act-ion resembling injection molding, with the-tip-niaterial penetrating the interstices of i 4 a t v portion a flexibility snhstantiallyin excess of said metallic member; whereby bending stresses adjacent the end of the boning have a, locus in the outer portion of'sziid boning,

said thinned zone comprising a pair of oppositely disposed circular recesses on opposite side faces of said terminal, each recess having a straight side wall, and each being of a diameter slightly in excess of half of the width of said terminal, thecombined depth of said recesses being substantially equal to half the thickness of said terminal. I I 1) References Cited in the file of this patent W i UNITED STATES PATBNTS V 

